Following the third victory at home in the Copenhagen Six Day for Par nr. 7, that is, the Danish duo of Alex Rasmussen and Michael Morkov, the road season begins in earnest for the two riders that are no longer teammates on the road. After successful 2010 seasons for both riders, Alex Rasmussen left Bjarne Riis's Saxo Bank team for HTC-Highroad, while Michael Morkov remained at home in Denmark with Riis.
The 26 year old Rasmussen has been the topic of considerable talk over the winter, particularly from his new director and fellow Dane, Brian Holm. Holm has spoken about the powerful young talent on several occasions - one time saying that he feels Rasmussen could "easily become World Champion in two years," then another time, labeling Rasmussen as a potential "Danish Thor Hushovd."
There's no questioning that Rasmussen is in possession of a truckload of potential, and it seems likely that it won't be long until he starts to unload some of it from his shoulders by way of some big results.
With a huge career on the road waiting for him, the winner of two stages of the Tour of Dunkirk in 2010 still finds time to pursue his passion and enjoy the discipline where he got his start, namely the track. Rasmussen and Morkov limited their track appearances over the winter, but still managed to attend a number of big Sixes, culminating with last week's Copenhagen Six. With the Six season over now, there's nothing to keep either away from their main duties: achieving big results on the road. For Rasmussen, that meant a flight to Oman on Saturday to begin acclimating to the desert and the time change ahead of the race, which begins on Tuesday, February 15th.
"I have Oman next week to get in a little road shape, and then I'm up and running at Het Volk in Belgium. It will be different and exciting, and I am delighted," said the HTC-Highroad rider, who is hoping to earn a spot in Mark Cavendish's leadout train in 2011, to Feltet.dk.
The six stage race will be an excellent start to Rasmussen's road campaign, and after that, things get serious. The native of Svendborg will get a chance to prove himself in Oman as he vies to become one of Mark Cavendish's merry-men, but after that, he'll get his chance in search of another goal - the Spring Classics.
Rasmussen left Saxo Bank, a deep Classics squad and relatively weak sprinting outfit, to head to HTC-Highroad, which is the best sprinting team in bike racing, and a relatively quiet Classics squad. Rasmussen knows that Bob Stapleton's team is no 2010 Saxo Bank in the Classics, but there's no question that the team has some potential in the one day races. The powerful Dane plans to play a support role for the most part this spring, but as always, if the opportunity presents itself, you can bet that Rasmussen will be there to take it. It would be a foolish man to bet against the powerful sprinter if he makes a small group that reaches the finish line together.
"We're not as strong a team as Saxo Bank last year, so we are not out to win it all. We will probably ride for Goss and Bernhard Eisel. If I can surprise in one of the minor classics, that would also be cool."
After the Classics, a spot on HTC-Highroad's Tour de France team is also high on the list of priorities. At the moment, there's no telling how that will go for Rasmussen but, Tour or no Tour, one race is 100% a goal for the new HTC signee: the World Championship time trial at home in Copenhagen at the end of the season.
"It's also really important for me to get to do the World Championship time trial. Of course, I would also like to do the road race, but in the time trial, I have a really good chance to do well, because the route is nearly perfect for me in Copenhagen."
It should be noted that Rasmussen isn't getting too far ahead of himself, in that he posts a goal of a top ten in Copenhagen as his goal for the time trial. That seems a more than reasonable possibility for the all-rounder.
With so many young talents heading into 2011, Rasmussen stands tall as one of the few that are not only worth watching, but one who seems poised to make a giant leap forward this year.